Tuesday, June 20, 2006

Pentagon lists homosexuality as disorder


"For many centuries, homosexuality has been considered a deviant form of behavior. In the early 20th century, w/ the advance of medicine and the emergence of psychology, the view of homosexuality shifted. It went from being an immoral way of life to constituting a health condition probably caused by biological and developmental factors rather than by lack of morality. Homosexuals went from being immoral to being sick. Later, after the removal of homosexuality from the list of mental disorders by the American Psychiatric Assoc in 1973, people have increasingly come to regard homosexuality as a legitimate variation of sexual orientation." That is UNTIL now: "The Pentagon classifies homosexuality as a mental disorder on a document, decades after mental health experts abandoned that position. The document, called a Def Dept Instruction, was condemned by medical professionals, members of Congress and other experts, including the Amer Psychiatric Assoc. The document outlines retirement or other discharge policies for service members w/ physical disabilities, and in a section on defects lists homosexuality alongside mental retardation and personality disorders." Well, they got one tiny part right: People are born mentally retarded, AND people are born gay. People do not choose to be mentally retarded OR gay. But I guess when the military is just searching for an excuse to ditch gay service members, this provides them with a way to do it. huh? Interestingly, Congress members noted that other Pentagon regulations dealing w/ mental health do not include homosexuality on any lists of psychological disorders. And in a letter to Rummy on Mon, 9 lawmakers asked for a full review of all documents and policies to ensure they reflect that same standard. Maybe it's just me, but when N Korea is just about to launch a nuclear test missile, doesn't the Pentagon have more pressing issues to engage in than gay bashing? Like maybe this?: Dubai STILL controls 22 US ports.
Posted by Tina :: 1:00 AM :: 8 Comments:

Post a Comment

---------------------------------------